Transfer portal QB’s are the way to go, the Noah Fifita’s are the exception.

[Ute Dub]

P12 QB Rankings

Penix – Transfer, 4 years at Indiana, 2 years at Washington
Nix – Transfer, 3 years at Auburn, 2 years at Oregon
Williams – Transfer, 1 year Oklahoma, 2 years USC.
Uiagalelei – Transfer, 3 years Clemson, 1 year Oregon State.
Rising – Transfer, Texas to Utah
Sanders – Transfer, lower league to Colorado.
Noah Fifita – Not a transfer.

Therefore, we should stop worrying about the Tuttle’s and Costelli’s working out, they are stop gaps, and long shot hopefuls. The top programs in the PAC 12 all have transfer QB’s as starters. The exception being Arizona. I don’t think Utah will be able to recruit top QB’s the first go around, they will need to take the spin offs from bigger programs or from smaller programs with over performing QB’s, the portal is the clear trend.

[PhiladelphiaUte]

Is Arizona the exception? I though DeLaura transferred in from Wazzu.

[Hellhound152]

Noah Fafita may be the happiest accident in College Football recruiting in a decade. Kudos to Fisch for taking a flyer on a 5’8″ QB. Kudos to Fafita for outplaying all of the QB’s on the roster but DeLaura to be 2nd string and then never losing the job after the injury. Further Kudos to Fisch for giving him a legit shot in camp to climb the depth chart in spite of the measurables.

[Rick]

I will be shocked if Fafita is as effective next year as he was this year. I think he kind of snuck up on folks this season.

[Roy Rangum]

The problem with transfer QB’s is they don’t come cheap. The NIL price tag for a good QB from the portal is in the neighborhood of 1-2 million. With our current NIL funding, we won’t be able to go out and get many of those guys. For teams like Utah, in the current NIL landscape it becomes even more imperative to recruit and develop the diamonds in the rough.

[Ute Dub]

That’s for a top and proven QB. Rising wasn’t proven, Penix wasn’t great before he came to Washington, there’s a lot of high talent that’s unproven and won’t be that high of sticker price IMHO.

[lindenska]

uh…Penix was unbelievable at Indiana when he was there (and healthy)

[Ute Dub]

Debatable. High’s and low’s. 4 TD’s and 7 INT’s in 2021.

“Seeking a fresh start after three years of high highs and low lows at Indiana, Penix turned to a coach he trusted in newly hired Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer. Within 10 days of putting his name in the portal, the quarterback knew where he needed to be.”

https://theathletic.com/5181121/2024/01/05/michael-penix-washington-transfer-portal-will-rogers/#:~:text=Seeking%20a%20fresh%20start%20after,where%20he%20needed%20to%20be.

[lindenska]

Nice try. Not debatable at all. Indiana is no football school, when Penix was there, they were good. You cherry-picked his worst year of course where he was playing through shoulder injuries. He already went 14td/4int the year prior.

[Ute Dub]

So you would pay $1-$2 million annually for an admitted unhealthy QB that had only played in 3, 7, 6, and 5 games the preceding 4 years?

[Northendzone Ute5]

Cameron Rising was a win. We took an L with Jake Bentley and Charlie Brewer.

[Ute Dub]

I mostly agree. Bentley was 3-2 as the starter during the Covid year, if I remember correctly.

I was very optimistic after that Covid year knowing we likely had 4 more years of Ty Jordan. 🥲

[Xanthis]

Bentley was a transfer L, but he was QB 2. Rising was injured against USC early and then Bentley was benched for Drew Lisk in the final game against Wazzu. That final game was so much fun.

Then we got to start 2021 with a new transfer in Brewer, woof.

[Utegator]

You only get 4 years with an RB if they aren’t good enough to go to the NFL.

[Central Coast Ute]

We had 4 years of Moss. That wasn’t because he was bad either.

[Trailgoat]

Looking forward to seeing Rising play his final season at Utah. Finding and developing a top level QB is not easy especially since very few want to put their time in. As some have posted, Rising, Penix, Nix, Ward, Uiagalelei all took time in a system to reach their potential. Penix’s first year at Indiana was 2018. It’s clear, the top college teams have NFL level talent at WR. No way getting around it, Utes need to buck up for better WRs.

[concerned]

I will bet any amount of money that Fifita does not finish his career at Arizona.

[Trailgoat]

Yup, same goes for Jedd Fisch. No way Fisch is at UofA after next season. He’s a Florida grad and would be a possible target hire at UF if/when Napier gets canned, which is looking very likely the way UF has been trending.

[The Miami Ute]

If you mean college career, then I’d say that he’s going to finish it in Tucson. He’s NFL draft eligible after next season.

[concerned]

Didnt realize that. You could be right, depending on how much NIL money may be offered.

[The Miami Ute]

Yes, next year he’ll be RS Sophomore in his third season with the Wildcats. If he continues on an upward tick, he’s a legitimate Heisman candidate ala Johnny Manziel or Kyler Murray. After another great season, the NIL would really have to be substantial for him to chance an injury or a regression in his game.

[Utegator]

Do you think NFL teams are still trying to draft under sized QBs? I feel like that experiment is over.

[Rick]

Exactly. I do not see Fafita as an NFL prospect at all. He is smaller than Kyler Murray and has half the speed.

[The Miami Ute]

I think in the NFL there’s room for anyone that’s dynamic and make plays. Doug Flute was only 5’8′ and he had a long and eventful NFL career. Even Murray is set for life. He looked really decent after he came back from his injury. We’ll see what happens but I definitely feel someone will pick him up.